WMO Checklist Helps Enhance Early Warning Systems

Africa, Americas, Asia-Pacific, Disaster, Europe, News, April 2 2018

Photo by Romel Velasco on Unsplash

INTERNATIONAL: Early warning, a critical component of disaster risk reduction (DRR), can prevent loss of life and reduce the economic impacts of hazardous events, including disasters, according to a multi-hazard early warning systems checklist developed by the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) in partnership with the UN Office for DRR (UNISDR), UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) and others.

Over the last thirty years, the number of lives lost from severe weather events has decreased largely because of increased accuracy of weather forecasting and warnings, and improved coordination with disaster management authorities.

Issued on World Meteorological Day on 23 March 2018, the report titled, ‘Multi-hazard Early Warning Systems: A Checklist,’ focuses on the need for community engagement and education, disaster preparedness and effective dissemination of warnings, all required for effective early warning. It incorporates the benefits of multi-hazard early warning systems, disaster risk information and enhanced risk assessments.

Early warning is an important component of a number of international agreements. The Sendai Framework for DRR recognizes the benefits of multi-hazard early warning systems. The SDGs address early warning, particularly those related to food security (SDG 2), healthy lives (SDG 3), resilient cities (SDG 11) and climate change adaptation (SDG 13). The Paris Agreement on climate change also mentions early warning systems as a focus area to enhance adaptive capacity, strengthen resilience, reduce vulnerability, and minimize loss and damage associated with the adverse effects of climate change.

An outcome of the first Multi-hazard Early Warning Conference that took place in May 2017 in Cancún, Mexico, the checklist updates the original document, ‘Developing Early Warning Systems: A Checklist,’ which emanated from the Third International Conference on Early Warning in March 2006.

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